Diaper Drive 2011!

I'm putting this in the Diapers thread as I'm not sure where else to put it.

So I've been thinking about something lately and wanted to suggest it to the community at large. I remember a few months ago, someone on the board suggested buying a pack of diapers and dropping them off at a local charity (consumable baby supplies are always in big demand). I thought this was a great idea, but sadly didn't participate at the time as I wasn't confident about the safety my short term finances.

However, both that post and my own attitudes display a common issue faced by charities: donations of goods spike around the holidays (Thanksgiving/Christmas/Hanukkah), often to the point that some charities need to turn down offers of items. The rest of the year, donations come much more infrequently. So I was thinking, what if we were to as a group collectively donate baby supplies to various charities? We can set a goal, say X total diapers, Y bottles, (etc etc) and the equivalent total value of $Z spent. On the honor system, we'll all report here what we bought, where we donated it to (if we wish), and the money spent on items.

Think about this: a typical infant needs 10-12 diaper changes per day and a typical toddler needs 6-8. In many poor families, they'll receive one diaper for the day and one for the night. Children who don't receive diaper changes are more likely to have severe childhood health problems and are more likely to be abused (continuous crying, a result of not being changed).

As for what it does for us, aside from the feel-good effects of charity, I think there's a number of benefits. Maybe it helps draw all of us together as a stronger community. Maybe when people stumble across our little corner of the internet, they'll see us as valuable members of society rather than the more negative portrayals that tend to make the news. For that matter, it could also help our reputation in the DiaperWeb. And in any case, I'd personally enjoy the rush of going to a store and buying a bunch of baby supplies, something I don't typically do because I have no use at all for baby bottles or pampers size 7.

Additional thoughts: Living with your parents doesn't need to necessitate not being able to donate diapers or baby supplies. Most high schools have at least one community service-oriented student organization. Go join them and ask if you can organize a baby supplies drive. If people ask why that, bring up the reasons I posted above (aside from the rush of buying diapers). It helps prevent child abuse, improves infant/toddler health, and the granddaddy reason, it's a very commonly overlooked type of item that food shelters and other charity-assistance organizations pass out but don't receive in big quantities. Plus, guys, these organizations have tons of girls in them and they'll think you're wonderful and sensitive after sharing the idea.

I think its a good idea. I'm young and handicapped so i dont really have the ability to phyisically donate but my family assists with daycare of other handicapped youth as kind of a pay it forward for the amount of effort and support the community has given in regards of my own personal development through my difficulties growing up. I dont really wanna talk about that cuz its very personal for me but the help we recieved sure helped us in times of need.. no it wasnt diapers but when i was younger and we didnt have the income we do now and my moms availibility like shes around now, i kinda needed alot of help to be looked after and stuff. So yea, i think helping those in need is a great idea ^^.

Chiharu's story is the exact idea I'm going for, and a great example of how we could do some good in the world.

Another point: if people are worried about not having a huge impact, that's fine! There's no reason we can't have a modest goal, say $250 worth of diapers and supplies. And if the logistics of getting to places to buy and/or donate diapers are challenging, then you can always donate money directly to charities. Also, Huggies has an awesome system that helps you donate- either from buying diapers from them for charity, or finding local drives. I think Pampers and Luvs have similar systems, though I can't find them.